Arena Profile: Sen. Pat Toomey

Senator Pat Toomey was elected to the U.S. Senate from Pennsylvania on a platform of limited government, economic and job growth, and restoring fiscal responsibility.

Since joining the Senate in 2011, he has distinguished himself as a leader on economic, financial services and budgetary issues, striving to restore fiscal discipline to Washington and economic opportunity for all Americans. Among other things, Sen. Toomey introduced a 10-year balanced budget proposal that received more votes in the Senate than any other budget plan in 2011, and he has successfully helped cut federal red tape for local communities and job creators in Pennsylvania through his Had Enough? constituent services program.

The senator serves on the Budget; Banking; Commerce; and Joint Economic committees. He also is the ranking member on the Commerce Committee's Consumer Protection, Product Safety and Insurance Subcommittee. He previously served on the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction.

Sen. Toomey previously served in Congress as a member of the House of Representatives from Pennsylvania's Fifteenth Congressional District, where he championed economic growth and fiscal discipline. In fulfillment of his three-term pledge, he retired from the House in 2004.

In addition to his public service, the senator has also served as president of the Club for Growth, owned and operated a small restaurant chain in the Lehigh Valley, and worked in the financial services industry.

A graduate of Harvard University, he lives in Zionsville with his wife, Kris, and their three children.

Sen. Pat Toomey's Recent Discussions

Could Ashley Judd beat Mitch McConnell?

It’s something we ought to be able to do. In fact, I know there are many Democrats, and it’s fair to say virtually every Republican, who agree on some sort of basic principles, like corporate taxes, think we ought to be able to do this. There are many Democrats who understand the need for this.

My own view is that there really shouldn’t be any talk of additional revenue unless it comes in the context of pro-growth tax reform.

I think it would be best to do some of this during the lame-duck session. I understand the difficulty of getting things done in a short period of time, but this needs to at least begin to be worked on. I think there are some very constructive ideas that could be implemented easily.

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